Christmas Message from Rev. Barb Sholis, Capitol Area South District Superintendent

As This Year Draws to a Close

I was one of those children. Maybe one lives under your roof right now. Or maybe you were a 'kindred spirit' of mine. It actually started when I was quite young. About 4:30 a.m. tiptoe, tiptoe...a finger poking the arm of my sleeping mother:

"Mommy, I think Santa's been here."

"No honey. Go back to bed; it's not time to get up."

That was not the right answer! I was far too excited! The next year, I grew braver - creeping down the stairs until I hit that one step-you know the one - three steps from the bottom that always creaked.

"Go back to bed; it's not time to get up."

The following year, my ballet lessons began paying off. I practiced balancing along the baseboards that ran down either side of the stairs. Yes! I finally made it all the way to the living room. There in the darkened room, over in the corner, stood the unlit Christmas tree. I could make out the shapes of presents, why I could even figure out a toy or two, but I stopped and stared in the silence. Something was missing: my family. It wasn't the same without them. So I quietly snuck back upstairs and waited-for what seemed like eternity-but it wasn't the same without my family. They were part of the joy of the special day.

As I reflect back on these first five months as your District Superintendent, the joy I feel is because I am getting to know you, the Capitol Area South Family. Some of you I've known for many years, and some of you I've just met. Nonetheless, there has been true joy for me in renewing my connection with our UM connection. There is something quite essential and formative that comes from spending time listening to the stories of one another, what you hold dear. I also listened to you express challenges and the hope/dreams that lie ahead. Isn't that the point of this season in some ways?

As James Sharrett wrote, "God pitches his fleshly tent in silence on straw, in a stable, under a star. The cry from that infant's throat pierced the silence of centuries. God's voice could actually be heard coming from human vocal cords. That's the joy of it. God has come to be with us. Nothing in this world can separate any of God's children from his love. Not even our prodigal rebellions, nor our adult indifferences; our sins nor our sufferings. No experience goes unattended by God. Cradles of insecurity -- he is there; deserts of temptation -- he is there; gardens of indecision -- he is there; crosses of suffering -- he is there. He is in them all. This is the God of Christmas!"

"And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth." Oswald Chambers wrote: "There is only one relationship that matters, and that is your personal relationship to a personal Redeemer and Lord. Let everything else go, but maintain that at all costs, and God will fulfill His purpose through your life."

This is Good News dear colleagues and friends. As 2011 draws to a close, we at the District Office wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas! May you be filled with wonder and touched anew by the miracle of the in-breaking of the kingdom through the birth of the Christ child -- Emmanuel-- God with Us!

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